Merriam-Webster defines “dash” as “moving with sudden speed.” For Nigerians however, it’s a bribe or gift. #Nigerian pidgin english examples driver#Use it in a sentence: “That driver is reckless, he doesn’t even trafficate.” Dash This mystifying word refers to using the turn signal when driving and it stands in for “indicate.” While “trafficator” is an old British English word for blinkers or indicator lights, “trafficate” itself is simply a reincarnation and won’t be heard in any non-Nigerian household. “Trafficate” is a Nigerian exclusive that particularly bewilders non-Nigerian English speakers. Use it in a sentence: “Mary has a new international job, she has hammered o.” Trafficate Yes, “jealous” also becomes a verb in Nigeria. Take note: reaching this level of success may result in people “jealousing” you or being envious of your riches. It can be heard in everyday speech as well as in popular songs (listen to “ Don’t Dull” by Wizkid for instance). It’s the act of coming into a considerable amount of money-legally or illegally. Remove your mind from auctions and power tools because when someone “hammers” in Nigeria, they’ve made it, blown up, gotten rich or hit the jackpot. #Nigerian pidgin english examples drivers#Use it in a sentence: “Lagos taxi drivers are always horning.” Hammer You’ll hear this when (not if) caught in one of Lagos’ infamous traffic jams or “go slow” as Nigerians call them. This is a distortion of the verb for blaring the horn of a car which is “honking”. For instance, when one feels abdominal pain they may express this as “my stomach is paining me.” The use of a car’s horn to produce a sound, therefore, becomes “horning” in Nigeria. Use it in a sentence: “Of course I’m going to reserve in advance, I’m not a Dundee United.” HorningĪ standard linguistic feature in Nigerian English is nouns being turned into verbs. If someone refers to you this way, they probably don’t hold your intelligence in high regard.Ĭontinue Reading Article After Our Video Recommended Fodor’s Video Rumors continue to swirl about its origins and it’s been instigating belly laughs for decades. fed this “fact” to visiting Nigerian soccer players during the 1989 under-16 World Championships that took place in Scotland. Another theory is that Dundee United’s rivals, Dundee F.C. Speculation is rife that their utterly disastrous tour is what gave birth to this saying. #Nigerian pidgin english examples professional#Dundee United is the name of a Scottish professional soccer club that visited Nigeria in the ‘70s. In fact, Nigerians themselves are none the wiser about where it comes from. This utterance is not to be found in any English classroom. Nigerians are alone in using “Dundee United” to earmark a fool or idiot. The result is a creative melee of “broken English” and words that, hilariously, have grown eternally distant from their original definitions. Nigerian English, however, is an amalgamation of British “Queen’s English,” cool Americanisms, and local languages (of which there are some 500). The British colonized this West African nation and departed its shores in 1960 leaving behind a legacy that would establish English as the official language. It has the largest population (over 200 million), a profitable film industry (Nollywood), and it’s currently enjoying global recognition as a culturally rich powerhouse-with hits on Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop chart to boot. Despite a shared language, lost in translation encounters of riotous proportions await English-speaking travelers in Nigeria.
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